On writing, books, films, potpourri and lagniappe on anything and everything...

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Publishers and some of the horses they rode in on...

Hi
folks,

Just
some things on my mind that keep me awake at night…

As
I’ve been doing this writing and publishing thing for a long time, I’ve been
fortunate enough to make some friends who have access to the powers-that-be in
publishing. From those folks, I’ve learned things that aren’t taught in MFA
programs or how-to books or at writing conventions. And much of what I learn
disturbs me. Actually… it doesn’t disturb me—it flat-out pisses me off.

When
I was a kid, all I ever wanted to be was a writer. I deemed it the most
honorable of all professions. Good books—I was taught—were the source of
knowledge and of truth. It was that truth thing that really attracted me. I was
born into one of those dysfunctional families most of us writer-types seem to
come from—one of those families in which truth was somewhat deficit from in our
daily dealings with each other. For instance, I was abused in a variety of ways
by a religious fanatic of a mother and by a father who abused me in another
variety of ways. Not trying to make a victim’s case here—just laying out the
way it was. It was about a year ago that I finally discovered that my father
wasn’t going to show up in my DNA. After 68 years, I finally learned the truth about the man. It wasn’t
that my mother suddenly felt the urge to confess. Nope. I learned the truth
from having a DNA test done with myself and one of my sisters. Last I heard, my
mother was still rewriting the story she laid on me…

Anyway,
the truth has always been my standard. Why I became a writer. Why I had
a personal agenda to always tell the truth in my fiction, no matter how it
might make me look to others. A long time ago, I came upon a piece of wisdom
that I’ve always believed—that the greatest of writers are those who are
willing to go deep inside themselves and expose that part of us that most
people try to keep hidden. That place where real truth resides.

I’m
saying all this in preface to what’s keeping me up at night. For years, it
seems, I’ve been more than a bit naïve. I’ve simply taken it on faith that
publishers had the same impetus as I have—to search for truth and present it to the world. A noble thing,
both for editors and publishers and writers.

And,
I was wrong. Or, maybe I was right at one time but things have changed a lot in
our culture.

A
close friend of mine who is close to the decision-makers in publishing recently
told me a couple of very disturbing things. It was concerning a book of mine,
THE BITCH. I consider it the best thing I’ve ever written and I’ve been
extremely gratified that a whole boatload of people I admire and respect—fellow
writers—quality writers—have agreed with my own opinion and have been gracious
enough to say so in public. I wanted desperately to see it in print, but alas,
so far have been unable to attract a print publisher. It is in ebook form and I’m
grateful for that. At least it’s out there for folks to read.

But,
what’s disturbing me is that my aforementioned friend had earlier championed it
among print publishers. What he told me is what keeps me up at night. Two
instances.

One
concerns a publisher of crime novels who agreed with my friend that the book
was, indeed “brilliant,” but passed on it saying “it had too many elements that
could be considered politically
incorrect. (italics mine). Excuse me… but what the fuck? A publisher who
even considers if writing is or isn’t politically correct? This isn’t a
publisher at all, in my opinion. This is a bookseller who wants to be seen as a
publisher. Probably wears those jackets with leather patches on the sleeves and
hangs out in writerly bars in Gotham City. But, a guy who proclaims himself a
publisher and won’t publish something because it’s “politically incorrect?”
Excuse me, but when I was in the joint we had a name for folks like this. The
name was… punk. I understand all about protecting one’s livelihood, but we’re
talking about a publisher, not a life insurance salesman. (Nothing against
insurance salesmen!). This is what I always assumed publishing was all about.
Putting out books that spoke the truth, no matter how inconvenient. And, truth
is more often than not inconvenient.

This
guy’s attitude just pisses me off. What really irritates me is that he isn’t
exposed for the poser he is. Most writers aren’t aware of his attitude. I really
wish I could name him and call him out, but the lawyers on my block tell me
that isn’t a wise move.

The
other person that keeps me tossing and turning is the guy who was the editor of
a Legacy 6 publisher. Who told our mutual friend that he’d love to publish THE
BITCH, but he couldn’t because his boss told him that if he signed any book
that earned a dime less than $30,000 he’d be fired. Not chewed out or had his
charge card suspended for a week or banished to the office without the window,
but fired. So his “brave new imprint” that was going to publish “new,
original and exciting talent” couldn’t for fear of loss of his corner office
and he thereafter only considered brand names. Instead of finding that new or
unknown talent he proclaimed to the world was his intent, his days consisted mostly
of trying to snatch brand name writers away from other houses. The more I
talked to others in the industry, the more I discovered that this was becoming
a standard for an awful lot of publishers. This guy, like the first guy, showed
his own level of courage. Which was tied to his wallet. I understand this in
many trades and professions but always thought publishers and editors looked
upon what they did as a “calling.” Turns out it’s about as much of a calling as
wearing an animal costume down at the fast food restaurant for minimum wage.
(Nothing against the folks who wear animal costumes—they’re very honest about
doing it for the bread only.)

What
these guys don’t realize is that this kind of attitude is what is going to be
their downfall. They’re becoming punks in jailhouse vernacular. And, their fate
will be the same. It’s their current mindset and publishing policies that will
spell their eventual doom. For what’s happening is that there are publishers out there who do believe
in truth and who do believe in writers who are courageous and who are
themselves courageous in the books they publish.

Right
now, they’re small. But, they’re growing. Publishers like Snubnose Press, New
Pulp Press, Bare Knuckles Press, StoneGate Ink and several others. I’m sorry to
omit listing them all and apologize for that omission. They’re growing and
there’s a reason. They’re not afraid to publish something that might be
controversial.

Print
publishers think they’re losing sales due to the cheaper costs associated with
ebooks. That’s a part of it, but another reason is that readers also want quality
for their purchases and don’t find enough originality in the same old books
they’ve had available before. There are just some new and exciting things out
there and it’s the new guys on the block who are providing it.

Writing
that appeals to everyone isn’t writing. It’s typing. If a book doesn’t piss off
at least some readers, I maintain it isn’t worth much. It’s Pravda.

There.
That’s my rant. I feel better now.

I
hope you’ll consider buying a copy of THE BITCH. If it somehow becomes such a
seller that a print publisher wants it, I’d love that, but I’ll also tell you
that I won’t let it go to one of the kinds of publishers described above.

Here’s
what some of those respected writers had to say about it:

THE BITCH is the kind of raw
crime fiction that's right up my alley, like sandpaper for the brain. Edgerton
has got the chops. Mad chops. Gonna make us all ashamed of our puny efforts one
day.

The Bitch is a vicious
barnstormer of a novel, a noir rollercoaster that won't let you unbuckle until
that final three-word smackdown. Les Edgerton is Eddie Bunker's pulpy cousin
and Eugene Izzi's soul brother, and with a spiritual family like that, you
can't go wrong. Pick it up immediately.

Les Edgerton
doesn’t pussyfoot around. He writes about real people drowning in desperation
in THE BITCH. He’s got a story to tell you so get ready; it’s coming at you
fast. Get ready…—Linwood Barclay, international
bestselling author of Never Look Away,
Clouded Vision, The Last Resort, Fear the
Worst, Too Close to Home, No Time for Goodbye, The Accident and others.

Les Edgerton’s
brilliantly hardboiled THE BITCH is the tense and hard hitting story of Jake
Bishop, a reformed ex-con whose dark past drags him back into a life of crime
like an umbilical cord tied tight around his neck. —Paul D. Brazill, author of 13
Shots of Noir.

I liked THE BITCH
so much that I wanted to publish it. But we lost out and Bare Knuckles Press
got a hell of a book. The Bitch is a dark crime fiction story that never once
pulls a punch or ducks behind some bullshit like “happy endings” or “closure.”
The Bitch isn't afraid to stay dark until the very end. —Brian Lindenmuth, editor/publisher of
Snubnose Press and Spinetingler Magazine.

From its opening
sentence to its last, THE BITCH is an engrossing journey into some very dark
places. Les Edgerton writes like a poet with a mean streak, and his prose goes
down easy and smooth like good liquor as it carves up your insides. —Henry Perez, author of Mourn the Living and Killing Red.

Imagine, if you
will, Les Edgerton, Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler sipping straight
whiskey while swapping lies in the back booth of the Linebacker bar as the
“noir” legends welcome Edgerton into the brotherhood of broken dreams. With THE
BITCH, Edgerton earns his way into this special literary brotherhood. No, The
Bitch isn’t a wild woman, but prison slang for “ha-BITCH-ual criminal.” This is
a taut tale of double-cross, death, diamonds and destruction as Jake Bishop
fights to protect all he holds dear—his freedom, his pregnant wife, and his
teen-age brother -- by holding The Bitch at bay when trapped into one last job.
Sam Spade and Phillip Marlowe could learn a thing or two from this
hairdresser.—Bob Stewart, author
of Remorse (Pinnacle) a True Crime
Book of the Month selection, Hidden Evil,
and others.

Les Edgerton. I
just read his newest hard-boiled effort, THE BITCH, and I realized I didn't
once breathe through the entire thing. Okay, that's an exaggeration, but it is
one of the most fun, dangerous, if not pyromanic literary performances of the
past year (word up is that parts of it are taken from Les's own life. Holy
crap, this guy shouldn't be alive!). Like Les's previous bestselling nonfiction
effort on writing, HOOKED, this novel is a sure bet.—Vincent Zandri author of The
Remains, The Innocent, Moonlight Falls and The Concrete Pearl.

THE BITCH is
superb. Edgerton’s hard, pitch-perfect prose and relentless plot provide a
one-two knockout punch of crime novel perfection...the real bitch of THE BITCH
is that I tried to buy this priceless work and publish it under a new imprint
and I couldn't afford the damn thing. Now it’s gold in someone else's pocket.—Cortright McMeel, author of Short (St. Martin’s Press), founding
editor and publisher of Murdaland
Magazine: Crime Fiction for the 21st Century andNoir Nation: International Journal of Crime
Fiction.

Every crime
novelist remembers how his breath was literally taken away when he first
started to read the early novels of Elmore Leonard. Les Edgerton has used the
time he served in prison well. Years from now many future crime writers will
also remember discovering him. His first crime novel, -but not his first
published book THE BITCH is a realistic crime noir kind of novel that reminds
me of Unknown Man 89, La Brava, Stick, and The Killer Inside Me (Jim Thompson).
—Joseph Trigoboff, author of The Bone Orchard and The Shooting Gallery.

These
guys’ opinions mean something to me. The guy who’s afraid to publish a book
that may be “politically incorrect?” Not so much…

Thanks
for listening to my rant! I’d be interested in other writer’s stories about
their publishing experiences. Now I can maybe get some sleep tonight and rest up for the forthcoming Bouchercon.

16 comments:

Thanks, Nigel. I probably shouldn't have gone off... my wife always tells me I shoot my mouth off too quickly and burn bridges... but it just irritates me the way some publishers chose the books they publish. There are a lot of folks out there who don't know what goes on behind the scenes sometimes and don't know why their books get turned down. Sometimes, it's the quality, but sometimes it's just because of a punk with no trouser beans...

Les, no truer words have been spoken. I still recall your final lecture at Vermont College in which you described yourself as living in someone's basement or garage, broke. A publisher offered you something like 10K for your new book (back when people were living nicely on 10K per year), but there was a catch. They wanted your to change a lot of your prose so that it would be "marketable." Or some such bullshit. You've always maintained your standards and that's why you're so respected. You've hung in there. You can't be beaten. That's the mark of a true artist and a true pro. It's why we're still here as professional writers and not part-timers pretending to be writers. Congrats on The Bitch and keep it going brother...Vince

This is the reason I decided to self-publish because of people like that. Agents who said they couldn't sell a sweet historical, when they do it all the time. It's all about who's going to make more money.

And you're right, fuck that. They're nothing but punks who have no clue what's going to happen to their jobs in another couple of years.

One helluva' post, Les. With folks like you out here, gives those of us in our infancy in writing, a ray of hope with a little sunshine thrown in. I can always count on your honesty when it comes to matters like this and thank you for your words. Like Veronica said earl;y, "fuck 'em".

Thanks Kenny, Stephanus and Tim. Unfortunately, there are many such stories like this out there and I think the reason they're not told is that the writer feels if he tells them, he'll be ostracized by those whose stories he/she relates. I'm too old to give a flying you-know-what at this point. It's just time some of these pretenders got exposed for what they are--play-it-safe bottom liners. The folks who used to run publishing houses believed in literature and good writing and they've become the minority, alas, like everything else, it all boils down to the bottom line now. What I don't think they realize is that as has always been the case, the cream will rise to the top and those who take chances on unknowns with genuine talent will eventually win out. Those who are only willing to play it safe will eventually lose. I hope!

About Me

Hi! Welcome to my blog. To introduce myself, I'm a full-time writer with eighteen books in print and I teach creative writing on the university level, through private coaching of writers, and on various on-line venues.
I write in a variety of forms: novels, short stories, nonfiction books, screenplays and the subjects I choose to write about are just as varied, including sports, literary fiction, thrillers, black comedy and the craft of writing.
I'm married to Mary and we have a son, Mike. I have two daughters--Britney and Sienna--from a previous marriage. I immigrated to Ft. Wayne, IN from the U.S.A. and it's where I still live today. Doing my best to learn the language and adjust to the culture.
I have a checkered past, having spent two-plus years incarcerated at Pendleton Reformatory back in the sixties for burglary. I'm all cleaned up now and you can invite me into your home and don't have to count the silverware when I leave.
Graduated from Indiana University with a B.A. in General Studies (Honors of Distinction); obtained an MFA in Writing from Vermont College.
Email: butchedgerton@comcast.net
Twitter: HookedOnNoir

Ken Bruen

I recently sent copies of THE RAPIST and THE BITCH to one of the best writers in the world, Ken Bruen. I just wanted to get on his radar and nothing else. He misunderstood and thought I was asking for a blurb... so he gave me one. Although unsolicited, it meant the world to me. Here's Mr. Bruen's email:

Dear Les

Thank you so much for the books and the superb novels.

You sure have lived the life and have a nice light touch in describing it.

I loved the novels.

Here is my blurb

Les Edgerton is the reincarnation of our beloved Eddie Bunker.

The writing is as tough and tender as Bunker with that wonderful sense of dry humour that underpins even the most violent of scenes.

This guy can write and like a focused Bukowski.

Make no mistake, here is the real deal.

The books cry out for movie deals.

Warmest wishes

Ken Bruen

On HOOKED

I read every writing book that comes down the pike, and I like a lot of them. But I LOVE Hooked / write fiction that grabs readers at page one and never lets them go! As punchy as Les Edgerton’s hard-hitting fiction, Hooked takes no prisoners. Clear, simple, direct, it offers something fresh in every chapter. I recommend it to all my students and even my colleagues. Your writing library won’t be complete without it.

Jerry Jenkins

Best-selling author of the Left Behind series and many others

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The Death of Tarpons

My first novel--was awarded a Special Citation from the Violet Crown Book Awards

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Advice to live by

Also... Senility isn't when you forget to zip up your pants... it's when you forget to zip them down...

Advice for writers: There is no such thing as a synonym. There's just the perfect word. The perfect word doesn't come in groups.

If life hands you lemons... make lemonade. Then... try to find someone to whom life has handed vodka...

Never argue with an idiot. They'll drag you down to their level... and then beat you with experience.

Political Correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end.

The value of the study of philosophy: Studying the deep thoughts of others is like studying their stools to figure out how to cook what they ate. It may be possible, but it's not worth what you have to wade through.

Two rules to live by to have a good life I gave to my son Mike:1. Never date a girl named after a day of the week.2. Never play poker with anyone named after a city.

The writer's only responsibility is to his art. He will be completely ruthless if he is a good one. He has a dream. It anguishes him so much that he can't get rid of it. He has no peace until then. Everything goes by the board: honor, pride, decency, security, happiness, all, to get the book written. If a writer has to rob his mother, he will not hesitate; the "Ode on a Grecian Urn" is worth any number of old ladies. (Wm. Faulkner)

Give a thief enough rope... and he'll use it to tie you up, beat you up, and steal all your stuff...

My life in one sentence: I keep getting bottle caps that say, "Try again." And so I do...